Mechanical toy



F. STRAUSS ET AL MECHAN I CAL TOY F11 Feb. 23, 1922 Patented .luly l, l924.

FERDINAND STRAUSS, OF NEWT YORK, AND .ALBERT DNGFELD, OE BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, A.SSIGNOBS, BY MESNE ASSGNMENTS, TO SAID STRAUSS.

MECHANICAL TOY.

Application filed February 23, 1922. Serial No. 538,425.

T all whom t may concern:

Be it known that we, FERDINAND S'riAUss and ALBERT DINGFELD, residents of New York city, county and State of New York, and

Brooklyn, .Kings County, State of New York, respectively, and citizens of the United States of America and Germany, respectively, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mechanical Toys, of

which the following is a specilication.

This invention relates to improvements in mechanical toys, one of the objects being to provide a toy embodying a movable member, that is to say, a motor driven support representing a boat, vehicle, or other object, upon which is mounted a figure arranged to dance or jig while the support is in motion, the motor mechanism being arranged to propel the support and to at the same time impart to the figure 4 dancing movements. Other features of improvement will be set forth in the following specification.

Ve will now proceed to describe our invention in detail, the'novel features of which we will point out in the appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, wherein Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view-of` an embodiment of our invention, only a por- 30. tion of a figure being shown;

.Fig 2 is a cross-sectional view, the section being takeiifon a line `2--2 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged plan view of the motor mechanism and its bracket; and

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of the ratcliet-retaining-pawl and ratchet.

One of the objects of our invention is to provide a unique toy embodying a motor propelled support, carrying a dancing figure, both the figure and the support being operated by the same motor. As a commercially successful toy is one that can be sold at a popular price, it becomes necessary to` build the structure out of as few parts as 4 but little time to assemble. In carrying out our invention, we employ a `minimum number of parts and have employed elements that can be formed by suitable dies, as will 'be explained. We have herein illustrated our invention as embodiedinthe form of al support 5 representing a boat having a deck 6, but open at the bottom, upon which a figure 7 is caused to dance. Both `the taboe@ 5 and figur@ 7 Will be @liberated ,by the possible, and to utilize elements requiringv :37 and the gear 14.

same motor mechanism 8, in this instance a spring motor. The motor mechanism is carried by a bracket 9 secured to the under surface of deck 6, as at 10 and 11, preferably by solder. The bracket 9 is made up of a bottom member 12 carrying vertical sidewalls 9a and 9b, the side wall 9b being secured to the deck 6 ofthe boat throughout a greater portion of its length than is side-wall 9a. The side-wall 9 is secured to the deck at one point only; the upper edge of side wall 9a, (excepting at the point where it is secured to the deck), being free from the deck, as at 13, Fig. 1, in order that said wall will be yieldable for a purpose to be hereinafter set forth.

rlhe motor is comprised of a spring operated gear 14 carried by a sleeve 15 surrounding a shaft 16 supported by the side walls 9a and 9". The spring 17, at oneend is fastened to-gear 14 and at its opposite end to a ratchet wheel 18 which is secured to shaft 16 but free from sleeve 1,5. rlhe shaft 16 eX- tends beyond the adjacent side 19 of the boat and is provided with a handle 20 for winding purposes. Motion is imparted by gear 14 through a train of gears 21, 22, 23 and 24 to a shaft 25, carrying a spider 26 made up (in this instance) of four arms 27 arranged to impiiige upon the under surface of a propeller disk 28 comprising a plurality of arms 29 which are inclined, as can be seen, in Fig. 2, relative to the axis of shaft 25. It may be stated that gears 21 and 22 are fastened together, both being loose upon shaft 25, while gear 24 and cooperating gear 30, are fastened to said shaft. The gear 30 imparts motion to a balance-wheel 31 through a thereto secured gear 32. Both gear 32 and wheel 31 are loose upon the shaft 33 for gear 23 and companion gear 34 with which gear 22 meshes.

As can be seen in Figs. 1 and 2, the main gear 14 contacts Iwith the element upon which the toy is placed, be it a carpeted or plain surface, saidelement being indicated by 35. The boat at its'bow is provided with a roller 36, and at the opposite end with a roller 37 which-is carried by bracket 9, the wheel 37 .being located on the side of the bracket opposite toma-in gear 14. The boat 5 is. movably supported by the rollers 3 6, Vhen the motor is in ope-ration, the toy resting upon' a support, the gear 14 will act as a traction @191961113 to propel the toy, as well as to actuate spider 2G to impart to the figure 7 dancing movements, Asuthe arms 29 of disk 28 are inclined, the arms 27, will, when the arms strike said disk, not only lift the disk and the thereto attached shaft 30 which carries the figure '7, but will cause the disk to move in a rotary direction, thereby partly turning the figure 7. The figure carries legs 38 and 39 made up of parts 40, 41, 42 and 43, the parts 42 and 43 being pivotally connected together at 44, and parts 4() and 41 pivotally connected to the body 45 at 4G.

To retain the spring 17 under tension, after' being Wound up, and to facilitate its Winding, We employ the ratchet wheel 18 Which cooperates with a stop 47 which acts as a pawl member. The stop or pawl member 47 is punched out of the Wall 9a of the bracket 9 which is vof yieldable or resilient metal. The teeth of ratchet 18 are inclined toward Wall 9a; hence, as the ratchet is rotated, the teeth will strike stop 47 and cause Wall 9@` to yield sufficiently to permit the teeth to pass. Movement in the opposite direction is prevented by the tooth which engages the edge 48 of the stop or pawl member 47.` By this means We are able to produce an exceedingly inexpensive paWl member, Which can beY formed by a die, thereby not only eliminating a rivetingoperation, but dispensing with the attachment of a spring to operate the pawl member against the ratchet and the furnishing of a separate pawl; hence, this feature eliminates a pa-Wl, its spring and assemblage of these parts, which Would involve riveting or other hand operations to secu re them in place.

A further feature of our invention consist-s of means supplemental to the ligure 7 to produce sound, the sound produced by the ligure being occasioned by the feet thereof striking the deck of the support. The

i means referred to consists of a metal box 49,

loca-ted under the deck 6 subjacent the figure and arranged to contain shot 50 or other similar elements. When the figure dances, the shot 50 Will be caused to jump or rattle around. in the box, thereby producing a rattling or rumbling sound in addition to the sound produced by the feet of the figure striking the deck, Which may be of sheet metal orother material, a drum surface, for instance.

One of the chief advantages of ou1` improvement is that the device can be as easily propelled upon a carpet or roughl surface as on. a lain or smooth surface, for the reason that tie teeth of gear 14 Will grip the. rough surfaceand propel the toy, which ordinarily Would not `move if the usual Vrollers or Wheels were used, owing to the fact that the resistancev Would be too great. As a matter of fact, We have designed the toy so that it can be operated' either] upon a rough carpet or upon a smooth surface. Most self-propelled toys will not operate upon a rough carpet for the reason that the wheels, which are operated by the motor mechanism, will not grip.

What we desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a toy having a resilient wall, a spring motor to propel the toy, a ratchet wheel associated with said motor, a paivl adapted to engage said ratchet wheel to prevent unwinding of the latter, said pawl comprising an outstruck portion in said resilient wall whereby said pawl will yeild upon a spring winding movement of said ratchet wheel.

2. In a motor, a bracket member having a yieldable wall, and a relatively rigid wall opposite thereto, a shaft carried by said Walls, a ratchet wheel carried by the shaft positioned adjacent the yieldable wall, a spring surrounding said shaft, a gear loose upon the shaft, said spring at one end being connected to the gear and at the opposite end to said ratchet wheel, and a rigid pawl member carried by the yieldable wall to engage said ratchet, all arranged so that said yieldable wall will yield to permit the teeth of the ratchet wheel to pass said paWl when said spring is being Wound up, and to spring back to position the paivl between adjacent teeth when a space between two teeth alines with the paWl.

8. In a motor, a bracket member having a yieldable wall and a relatively rigid wall opposite thereto, a sha-ft carried by said Walls` a ratchet Wheel carried by the shaft positioned adjacent the yieldable wall, a spring surrounding said shaft, a gear loose upon the shaft, said spring at one end being connected to the gear and at the opposite end lto said ratchet wheel, a pawl member stamped out of the material composing the yieldable. Wall to engage said ratchet, all arranged so that said yieldable wall will yield to permit the teeth of the ratchet wheel to pass said pavvl when said spring is being wound up and to spring back to position the pawl between adjacent teeth when a space between two teeth alines with the pawl.

4. In a motor, a bracket member having a yieldable wall and a relatively rigid wall opposite thereto, al shaft carried by said walls, a ratchet wheel carried by the shaft positioned adjacent the yieldable wall, a spring surrounding said shaft, a gear loose upon the shaft, said spring at one end being connected to the gear and at the opposite end to said ratchet Wheel. a paw] member stamped out of the material composing the yieldable Wall to engage said ratchet, all arranged so that yieldable Wall will yield to permit the teeth of the ratchet Wheel to pass said pawl when said spring is being wound up and to spring back to position the pawl between adjacent teeth when a space between two teeth alines with the pawl, the teeth of said ratchet being bent toward the yieldable wall to actas cam members to force the pawl out of their path of movement.

5. In a toy, a movable member, a motor to propel the same, said motor being com prised of a plurality of intermeshing toothed gears, means to actuate the gears, one of the gears being larranged to contact with the surface upon which the toy rests to act as a traction agent to propel the toy, a figure on.said toy, means for actuating said ligure, and a sound producing device in said toy, said sound producing device being arranged so that the movements of said figure cause vibration thereof.

6. In a toy, a movable member, a figure mounted on said movable member, means for actuating said figure including a train of gears, and a motor to propel said movable member along a suitable support and to actuate said train of gears, said motor including a toothed gear and a spring to operate said toothed gear, one gear of said gear train being in mesh with said motor toothed gear, said motor toothed gear bearing directly on the support 'for said movable member, whereby said motor gear both acts to drive the gear train to actuate said figure and simultaneously acts as a traction agent on said support to propel said movable member.

In testimony whereof we hereunto aiiix our signatures.

FERDINAND STRAUSS. ALBERT DINGFELD. 

